Rain water retention system

ABSTRACT

A rain water collection system which collects rain water from rain drains from the building and the vehicle parking area. Rain water from both sources are commingled in a receiving reservoir. When the reservoir, buried underground, is full, excess rain water is discharge through an overflow pipe into a percolation system which leaches the excess rain water into the soil. A pressure system draws the rain water from the reservoir and provides irrigation to the site.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to water retention and more particularly to rain water collection and distribution systems.

Since pre-historic times, the collection of rain water has proven to be key to the life of many cultures. Some villages of the ancient Mayans constructed their plazas to drain into a holding/storage cave. These caves served the purpose of maintaining a source of water during the dry spells as well as a place to safely store food stores in higher portions of the caves.

In many Caribbean islands, rain water from the runoff of buildings is collected in cisterns to supplement water during the dry periods between rains.

The need to collect rain water is particularly pronounce in the Southwest of the United States where streams do not run year round. In the modern era, wells are used to supplement the water sources and even extensive canal systems are used to bring water from year-round flowing rivers to cities where a reliable source of water does not exist.

Unfortunately, as the populations grow in these dryer climes, the need for more water also grows putting added pressure on the aquifer (where wells draw their water) and flowing rivers. This ever increasing demand on water is not expected to diminish as the populations in the and Southwest grows because of the weather and enhanced lifestyle.

To curb increasing demands, there has been increased efforts to efficiently use what water is being pumped or delivered by canal. Farms are more efficient with their water usage; factories attempt to recycle water where possible; and homes are installing more water efficient appliances. All of this is important, but there continues to be shortfalls.

Ironically, even when there is a push to be more water efficient, municipalities are faced with handling rain water. To assist in delaying the costs that a municipality spends on rain water drainage is the requirement that shopping centers and housing developments put in retaining ponds to keep rainwater from leaving the property. The retaining pond allows the rain water to percolate into the ground or evaporate into the air; thereby eliminating the need to construct more and larger storm pipes.

While this may delay the costs to the municipality, the landowner is now faced with dedicating a portion of the property to a retaining pond which reduces the usable area and also requires significant costs in upkeep to keep the site looking acceptable.

It is clear there is a need for an efficient mechanism for the collection and distribution of rain water.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention is a rain water collection system which assists in reducing water costs and also increases the usable property.

This invention is applied generally to commercial property which has an edifice or buildings thereon together with a parking lot. The apparatus collects rain water from the rain drains from the building and the vehicle parking area. This ability to simultaneously collect the rain from both sources greatly increases the rain being harvested.

Those of ordinary skill in the art readily recognize how these collection mechanisms are formed. Examples are illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 7,614,192, entitled “Building Drainage System” issued to Safe on Nov. 10, 2009; and, U.S. Pat. No. 7,493,728, entitled “Rainwater Collector” issued to Dussault et al. on Feb. 24, 2009; both of which are incorporated hereinto by reference.

As example, assume the building has a ten thousand square foot roof surface, an inch of rain will generate in excess of six thousand gallons. If there is 100,000 square feet of parking around the building, then an additional sixty thousand gallons is collected resulting in excess of sixty six thousand gallons of collected water from an inch of rain.

To reduce clogging of the system, the rain water is filtered before being deposited into the reservoirs. This is ideally done using screens at the collection points. These screens are preferably adapted to be removed and cleaned of debris so that drainage of the rainwater from the parking area and the edifice is facilitated.

Other filters are obvious to those of ordinary skill in the art, including, but not limited to: U.S. Pat. No. 7,485,218, entitled “Storm Water Filtration System” issued to Dussich, I on Feb. 3, 2009; U.S. Pat. No. 7,550,077, entitled “Downpipe Filter” issued to Graf on Jun. 23, 2009; and, U.S. Pat. No. 7,584,577, entitled “Rain and Storm Water Filtration Systems” issued to Esmond et al. on Sep. 8, 2009; all of which are incorporated hereinto by reference.

Rain water from both sources are commingled in a receiving reservoir. The reservoir's capacity is chosen to accommodate a typical maximum single rainfall. While this discussion refers to a single reservoir, it is not so limited. In some embodiments the reservoir consists of a series of tanks interconnected with pipes so that the collected rain water is dispersed between the various tanks.

Those of ordinary skill in the art readily recognize a variety of reservoirs or tanks which can be used in this context, including, but not limited to U.S. Pat. No. 7,572,372, entitled “Tank” issued to Graf on Aug. 11, 2009, incorporated hereinto by reference.

In the preferred embodiment, access through a man-hole into the reservoir(s) permits periodic cleaning and repair of the reservoirs.

The reservoir is buried and, in the preferred embodiment, a parking area is created over the reservoir to expand the usable area for the facility.

When the reservoir, buried underground, is full of rain water, excess rain water is discharge through an overflow pipe into a percolation system which leaches the excess rain water into the soil. While the ideal reservoir system is capable of handling a typical maximum rainfall, non-typical rain fall may be encountered, or the reservoir may not have the available capacity to store even a typical rainfall. In this case, the excess rain is discharged into a leeching bed.

A variety of leeching mechanisms are used in this context including, but not limited to leech lines extending from the reservoirs, vertical leech mechanisms, and having a leeching field completely surrounding the reservoirs.

The collected rain water is ideally treated to prevent pathogens from growing therein. This is done by either circulating the water using a simple circulation system or through a variety of processes well known to those of ordinary skill in the art, including, but not limited to U.S. Pat. No. 7,560,031, entitled “Process for Treating Pond Water” issued to Astley et al. on Jul. 14, 2009, incorporated hereinto by reference.

Once the rain water has been collected, in the preferred embodiment a pressure system draws the rain water from the reservoir and provides irrigation to the site. In this way, the facility provides a great deal if not all of its irrigation needs through the collection of rain water.

The invention, together with various embodiments thereof, will be more fully explained by the accompanying drawings and the following descriptions thereof.

DRAWINGS IN BRIEF

FIG. 1 is a top view of the layout for an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 2 is a functional layout for the preferred embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 diagrams the preferred arrangement for a leech/percolation field with reservoir.

FIG. 4 illustrates an alternative leech/percolation field arrangement.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of the invention which treats the rainwater within the reservoir.

DRAWINGS IN DETAIL

FIG. 1 is a top view of the layout for an embodiment of the invention.

In this illustration, parking lot 11 surrounds office building 10. Placed around parking lot 11 are storm drain collectors 10 which collect the rain water and direct it along pipes 15 to holding tanks/reservoirs 14.

Additionally, rain is collected on office building 10 and is directed to holding tanks/reservoir 14.

In this illustration, two holding tanks 14 are used and are interconnected by pipes to allow the holding tanks 14 to work in a gang relationship. When the holding tanks 14 reach their maximum allowable level, the rain water being collected overflows through pipe 17 to leech field 13.

Note, in this illustration, holding tank/reservoirs 14 are located under the parking lot 11. In some embodiments, the holding tanks/reservoirs 14 are remote from the parking lot 11. This type of arrangement, where the reservoirs are remote, are ideal for community water retention and usage.

FIG. 2 is a functional layout for the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Rain water 20A is collected into storm drain 12. Screen 22 covers storm drain 12 and prevents large debris from flowing into the system. Screen 22 is removable allowing it to be periodically cleaned.

The collected rain water flows through pipe 23 to reservoir 14. As noted earlier, reservoir 14 may be a single unit or may consist of multiple units working in a gang relationship.

In similar fashion, rain water 20B is collected on the building/edifice and direct to reservoir 14.

Over flow 21 prevents reservoir 14 from becoming too full by discharging the excess collected rain water into leech field 13.

Pump 24 draws the collected water from reservoir 14 and pressurizes the water in pressure tank 25. Periodically, time 26 opens valve 27 which allows water from the pressure tank 25 to flow to a flow meter 9 which has been approved by the local utilities. Use of flow meter 9 permits the site to collect the proper credit from the local utility company when the collected rain water is channeled to the irrigation system 28. In this manner, the rain water is collected and then used for irrigation purposes.

FIG. 3 diagrams the preferred arrangement for a leech/percolation field with reservoir.

Reservoir 32 is positioned beneath parking surface 30 and soil layer 31. Rain water is delivered by catch basin 38 which collects rain water from the parking surface 30. Screen 37 prevents debris from entering the system and is removable for cleaning.

The rain water is collected in reservoir 32, if filled with rain water, the excess rain water is discharged via overflow pipe 33 which deposits the excess rain water into leech field 35 in which reservoir 32 is positioned.

This arrangement permits easy retro-fitting of the present system into existing retaining ponds. The retaining pond may be deepened, the leech field of stones is created, the reservoir is placed and connected to pipes, the leech field is extended around the sides of the reservoir, the reservoir and leech field is covered by a layer of soil, and then the parking surface is created. This provides not only an improved collection of the rain water but also increases the usable area for the site since the parking surface is extended to cover what was previously the retaining pond.

Pipe 34 extends from reservoir 32 to a pump allowing the collected rain water to be used for irrigation and other applications. In some applications, the collected rain water is also used within the edifice for “grey water” type of applications such as toilets; thereby reducing the demands for “clean” water by the edifice.

Manhole 36 communicates with reservoir 32 allowing entry into reservoir 32 for cleaning and maintenance duties.

FIG. 4 illustrates an alternative leech/percolation field arrangement.

In this illustration, reservoir 40 is positioned beneath parking surface 42. Reservoir 40 has an inflow pipe 43 which accepts the rain water from the parking surface (not shown) and the edifice (not shown). The collected water is withdrawn by pipe 44 which communicates with a pump (not shown) used for irrigation purposes.

Overflow pipe 41 extends from reservoir 40 to collar 45 which is ideally filled with rocks serving as a percolation mechanism. Collar 45 is open at the bottom (which is positioned well below the bottom of reservoir 40) allowing the water to percolate into the aquifer. In some embodiments, collar 45 is empty and is not filled with rocks.

Manhole 46 communicates between collar 45 and the ambient conditions allowing for maintenance and inspection of collar 45.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of the invention which treats the rainwater within the reservoir.

In this embodiment, reservoir 50 receives rainwater via inflow pipe 51. To discourage stagnation of the collected water, circulating pump 52 withdraws water from reservoir 50 and then drops it back into reservoir 50. Circulating pump 52 is powered, in this embodiment, by solar panel/collector 54, which generates electricity.

Vent 53 permits direct access to the interior of reservoir 50 allowing chemicals to be easily deposited into reservoir 50. These chemicals are chosen to restrict stagnation of the collected water.

It is clear that the present invention provides a greatly improved rain water collection system. 

1. A rain water collection system for an edifice having an accompanying vehicle parking area, said collection system comprising: a) an edifice drainage system collecting rain water from said edifice and directing such collected rain water into an edifice drain pipe; b) a vehicle parking area drainage system collecting rain water from said vehicle parking area and directing such collected rain water to a vehicle parking area drain pipe; c) a reservoir receiving rain water from said edifice drain pipe and the vehicle parking area drain pipe, said reservoir having: 1) an overflow pipe, and, 2) a discharge pipe; d) a percolation system receiving water from said overflow pipe; and, e) a pressure system having, 1) a pump drawing water from said discharge pipe, and, 2) a pressure vessel receiving water from said pump.
 2. The rain water collection system according to claim 1, wherein said percolation system surrounds said reservoir.
 3. The rain water collection system according to claim 1, a) further including a collar having an open lower end; and, b) wherein said percolation system is contained within said collar.
 4. The rain water collection system according to claim 3, wherein, a) said collar is positioned in a vertical manner; and, b) the lower end of said collar is positioned significantly below a base of said reservoir.
 5. The rain water collection system according to claim 4, wherein an upper end of said collar is open and exposed to ambient conditions.
 6. The rain water collection system according to claim 1, further including a circulation pump drawing rain water from said reservoir and depositing the rain water back into said reservoir.
 7. The rain water collection system according to claim 6, further including a solar collector generating electricity from solar rays, said electricity powering said circulation pump.
 8. The rain water collection system according to claim 1, wherein said reservoir is contained beneath said vehicle parking area.
 9. The rain water collection system according to claim 8, wherein said reservoir includes a man-hole opening permitting access to an interior of said reservoir.
 10. A rain water collection system for a site having an edifice drain pipe draining water from an edifice on said site and a vehicle parking area on said site having a parking lot drain pipe collecting rain water from said vehicle parking area, said collection system comprising: a) a reservoir receiving rain water from said edifice drain pipe and the vehicle parking area drain pipe, said reservoir having and overflow pipe; and, b) a percolation system receiving water from said overflow pipe.
 11. The rain water collection system according to claim 10, a) wherein said reservoir includes a discharge pipe; and, b) further including, a pressure system having, 1) a pump drawing water from said discharge pipe, and, 2) a pressure vessel receiving water from said pump.
 12. The rain water collection system according to claim 11, wherein said percolation system is remote from said reservoir.
 13. The rain water collection system according to claim 11, further including a circulation pump drawing rain water from said reservoir and depositing the rain water back into said reservoir.
 14. The rain water collection system according to claim 13, wherein said reservoir includes at least two containers connected by pipes.
 15. A rain water collection system for an edifice having an accompanying vehicle parking area, said collection system comprising: a) an edifice drainage system collecting rain water from said edifice and directing such collected rain water into an edifice drain pipe; b) a vehicle parking area drainage system collecting rain water from said vehicle parking area and directing such collected rain water to a vehicle parking area drain pipe; c) a reservoir positioned beneath said vehicle parking area and receiving rain water from said edifice drain pipe and the vehicle parking area drain pipe, said reservoir having: 1) an overflow pipe, and, 2) a discharge pipe; d) a percolation system positioned beneath the vehicle parking area and receiving water from said overflow pipe; e) a pressure system having, 1) a pump drawing water from said discharge pipe, and, 2) a pressure vessel receiving water from said pump; and, f) an irrigation system removing water from said pressure vessel and delivering such water to plants positioned proximate to edifice and vehicle parking area.
 16. The rain water collection system according to claim 15, wherein said percolation system surrounds said reservoir.
 17. The rain water collection system according to claim 15, a) further including a collar having an open lower end; and, b) wherein said percolation system is contained within said collar.
 18. The rain water collection system according to claim 17, wherein, a) said collar is positioned in a vertical manner; and, b) the lower end of said collar is positioned significantly below a base of said reservoir.
 19. The rain water collection system according to claim 18, wherein an upper end of said collar is open and exposed to ambient conditions.
 20. The rain water collection system according to claim 19, wherein said reservoir includes a man-hole opening permitting access to an interior of said reservoir. 